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Odesa's ports have been regular targets for Russian attacks
since Moscow withdrew on July 17 from a U.N.-brokered deal that
allowed Ukrainian grain to be exported via the Black Sea.
Before the latest attack, Ukrainian Deputy Prime minister
Oleksandr Kubrakov said Russian air strikes had damaged 26 port
infrastructure facilities and five civilian vessels in the
previous nine days. He gave no further details of the damage.
Odesa Governor Oleh Kiper said Russia fired Kalibr missiles at
an unspecified port from a submarine in the Black Sea in the
overnight attack. He said a security building had been destroyed
and two cars damaged.
Ukraine's air force said two missiles were fired in the attack,
and that it had been unable to shoot them down, but that air
defences had shot down eight drones that Russia launched to
attack other regions of Ukraine overnight.
Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for Ukraine's southern military
command, said an overnight thunderstorm had helped Russia in the
overnight attack on the Odesa region.
"The enemy took advantage of the weather conditions, and
launched the missile during the thunder and wind and at an
extremely low height in order to make spotting them more
difficult," she said.
Humeniuk said air defences had been strengthened in certain
areas, but that further strengthening was still needed.
(Reporting by Max Hunder; Editing by Tom Hogue, Kim Coghill and
Timothy Heritage)
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